From
1890 on, the
portrait became the basic genre in Serov’s art. It was in this field that his early style would become apparent, the paintings notable for the psychologically pointed characteristics of his subjects. Serov’s favorite models were actors, artists, and writers (
Konstantin Korovin, 1891, Isaac Levitan, 1893, Nikolai Leskov, 1894, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, 1898, - all in the Tretyakov gallery).
Initially abstaining from the polychromatic, brightly colored painting style of the
1880s, Serov often preferred a dominant scale of black-grey or brown tones.
Impressionistic features appeared sometimes in composite construction of a portrait, or to capture a sense of spontaneous movement. As in the work of his contemporaries
John Singer Sargent and
Anders Zorn, the impressionism is not doctrinaire, but derives as much from the study of
Hals and
Velázquez as from modern theory. Receiving wide popularity, in
1894 Serov joined with the
Peredvizhniki (The Itinerants), and took on important commissions, among them portraits of grand duke Pavel Alexandrovich, (
1897, Tretyakov Gallery), S.M. Botkin, 1899, and F.F. Yusupova,
1903 (both in the
Russian Museum in
St. Petersburg). In these truthful, compositionally skillful, and picturesque executions in the grand manner, Serov consistently used linear-rhythmic drawing coupled with decorative color combinations.
At the same time, he developed a contrasting direction: he frequently produced intimate, heartfelt, chamber portraits, mainly of children and women. In portraits of children Serov aspired to capture pose and gesture, to reveal and emphasize a spontaneity of internal movement, sincere cleanliness and clearness of attitude of the child (
Children,
1899, Russian Museum;
Mika Morozov,
1901, Tretyakov gallery). Serov frequently called upon various graphic techniques -
watercolors, pastels, lithographs and so forth. Figures in Serov’s portraits gradually became more and more graphically refined and economical, particularly during the late period (Vasily Kachalov,
1908, Tamara Karsavina, 1909; numerous figures from
Ivan Krylov’s fables,
1895-1911). From
1890 to
1900 Serov produced many
landscape compositions on country themes, in which the artistic direction took a romantic turn.
